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Josephine's — Seafood restaurants in Houston

Josephine's

Seafood restaurantHouston, TX

4.6 out of 5 stars4.6(686 reviews)

Quick info

+1 713-527-8988
318 Gray St, Houston, TX 77002, United States
$20–60 · Reported by 78 people

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About Josephine's

Josephine's works a seafood and Southern menu out of a Gray Street address in Houston, with around 29 dishes running from raw and chilled starters through to whole-fish cooking. Fish collars anchor the kitchen's nose-to-tail approach and draw repeat orders, served alongside a blue crab rice bowl and, in season, Viet-Cajun crawfish. Oysters turn up throughout, raw by variety or charbroiled, and crab shows up in more than one form, from marinated crab fingers to BBQ blue crabs. Lighter plates include the smoked redfish dip and a heirloom tomato salad, while homemade biscuits arrive with butter and jam. Hush puppies, including a jalapeño version, and brussels sprouts round out the sides. The dining room is small and fills up, and reservations do not require a credit card to hold. The kitchen opens daily.

Good to know

  • Reservations
    Accepts reservations
  • Parking
    Free of charge street parking · Paid parking lot · Paid street parking
  • Accessibility
    Has wheelchair-accessible car park · Has wheelchair-accessible entrance · Has wheelchair-accessible seating

Menu & Prices

29 dishes · mains $12–45
  • SMOKED REDFISH DIP$16.00
  • CAESAR CRUDO$18.00
  • SHRIMP COCKTAIL$16.00
  • MARINATED CRAB FINGERS$16.00
  • SOUTHERN PEA SALAD$16.00
  • HEIRLOOM TOMATO SALAD$15.00
See full menu & prices →

Reviews

4.6/5
686 reviews

What reviewers say

Reviewers most often mention oysters (charbroiled and $1), homemade biscuits with jam, crawfish boil and crab fingers.

5★
544
4★
72
3★
34
2★
11
1★
25

Customer Review Summary

Oysters anchor most visits, whether the charbroiled ones a couple compare favorably to New Orleans standards, the prestige and admiral varieties, or the dollar happy hour oysters one regular returns for, though one diner found theirs a little dry. Close behind sit the crawfish, praised as the best one reviewer had eaten and singled out again in a viet-cajun preparation, and the biscuits, which even a disappointed diner called the star of the show. Also recurring: the crab fingers, jalapeño hush puppies, gumbo, and a shrimp po-boy one visitor valued for its Leidenheimer bread. The complaints cluster around heaviness and value: dry half chicken with too much mayo in the sauce, greasy and salty shrimp and grits, Brussels sprouts with too much sauce and too many competing flavors, bony fish collars, and one diner who rated everything else a five out of ten against the prices. Several suggest reserving, since the room is small. One table's stale tuna chicharrones were remade without fuss.

Featured reviews

  • Ganna Rybalchenko
    “It was incredible visiting this place for the first time, and I will definitely be back! The best crawfish I’ve ever had, excellent service from Justin, and an overall very cozy and welcoming atmosphere! You can see how delicious it was on a pictures before/after:))”
  • Christine Bieda
    “Brussel sprouts had too much sauce and differing flavor profiles. Just too much going on for me but some may prefer it like that. Boiled shrimp and crawfish were good. Again the sauce was heavy and I'm glad we …”
  • Tyler Fuller
    “Love Josephine's, happy hour drinks and $1 oysters, can't beat it. Great seafood options. Some but not a ton of options for vegetarians. Recently had their viet-cajun crawfish and it was outstanding! Loved it! They made a homemade …”
  • sweeta babeeta
    “Worth the trip! Stopped by on our way home from IAH looking for some Louisiana style food. Success! The recipes actually are slightly Mississippi influenced, but in Houston it is surprisingly difficult to find seafood which is actually seasoned New Orleans style. Josephine’s does a great job. It was a little early this season for crawfish, so the shells were a bit soft and they tended a little small, and not quite as heavily seasoned as I prefer, but the market price was in line with the area and the flavor was good. They seem to combine the boil and steam methods, which is how I prepare crawfish as well, so you can ask them to add more of the seasoning if you want to. I found the flavor built over time, so I didn’t modify. Most critically, you can get a real po-boy sandwich here. Yes! Leidenheimer bread, THE ONLY LEGITIMATE (remaining in commercial production) PO-BOY BREAD is used for their shrimp po-boy. My boys would only give me a corner of a crust, so it’s possible that I need to be a nicer mom, but it melts on the mouth. For this alone, we would be returning, but happily every item we tried (fresh oysters, hush puppies, the French fries and the above) was very good to excellent. Hope you enjoy it as much.”
  • Patrice
    “"I recently had the pleasure of celebrating my birthday at Josephine’s with family and friends, and we were thoroughly impressed by the experience. Our server, Justin, was a standout - attentive, patient, and incredibly knowledgeable about the menu offerings. The appetizers were a highlight, particularly the jalapeño hush puppies, which were crispy, flavorful, and perfectly balanced in terms of spice. And the homemade biscuits? Absolutely divine - flaky, buttery, served with a flavorful jam. As for the entrees, I opted for the seafood boil, which was pretty tasty. The seasoning was light, with just the right amount of kick, although I felt the mushrooms could have benefited from a bit more grilling time. My friend, on the other hand, raved about the BBQ blue crabs, which were a resounding 10 out of 10. One thing that impressed me was the restaurant's approach to reservations - unlike many other spots in the area, they didn't require a credit card to hold our spot, which was a refreshing change of pace. Overall, I'd highly recommend this restaurant to anyone looking for a delicious, satisfying meal in a welcoming atmosphere. Can't wait to come back and try more of their offerings!"”

Hours

Monday
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Tuesday
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Wednesday
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Thursday
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Friday
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Saturday
Sunday

Highlights

  • Has fast service
  • Has great beer selection
  • Serves great cocktails
  • Serves local speciality
  • Good for watching sport
  • Popular for popular for lunch

Amenities

  • Has wheelchair-accessible car park
  • Free of charge street parking
  • Accepts reservations
  • Has outdoor seating
  • Offers takeaway
  • Serves dine-in
Show more amenities
  • Has bar on site
  • Casual
  • On-site services available
  • Serves beer
  • Serves coffee
  • Serves comfort food
Offerings· 6
  • Serves alcohol
  • Serves cocktails
  • Serves happy-hour drinks
  • Serves small plates
  • Serves spirits
  • Serves wine
Crowd· 2
  • Good for groups
  • Popular with tourists
Accessibility· 3
  • Has wheelchair-accessible entrance
  • Has wheelchair-accessible seating
  • Has wheelchair-accessible toilet
Dining options· 6
  • Serves lunch
  • Serves dinner
  • Has catering
  • Serves dessert
  • Has seating
  • Has table service
Facilities· 1
  • Has toilet
Parking· 3
  • Paid parking lot
  • Paid street parking
  • Plenty of parking
Planning· 1
  • Dinner reservations recommended
Highlights· 5
  • Has fast service
  • Has great beer selection
  • Serves great cocktails
  • Serves local speciality
  • Good for watching sport
Popular for· 3
  • Popular for lunch
  • Popular for dinner
  • Good for solo dining
Atmosphere· 2
  • Cosy
  • Trendy

Location

Seafood restaurants near Josephine's

Josephine's
$20–60
4.6686
  • 1.1 mi$20–40

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